Short Stories

Am I Blue?: Coming Out from the Silence

Original stories by C. S. Adler, Marion Dane Bauer, Francesca Lia Block, Bruce Coville, Nancy Garden, James Cross Giblin, Ellen Howard, M. E. Kerr, Jonathan London, Lois Lowry, Gregory Maguire, LeslÉa Newman, Cristina Salat, William Sleator, Jacqueline Woodson, and Jane Yolen

Each of these stories is original, each is by a noted author for young adults, and each honestly portrays its subject and theme--growing up gay or lesbian, or with gay or lesbian parents or friends.

Visions: 19 Short Stories

Imagine...

Nineteen superb stories by today's best-known authors of young adult novels, coming together to create a window of the mind, a vision illuminating the joys and sorrows of young people.

These nineteen splendid stories range from tales of tender romance and the delights of mystery and fantasy to the struggles of death, divorce, and growing up. Here are recollections from the past, stories of today, and visions of the future.

8 Plus 1

Meet seventeen-year-old Mike, who visits his grandmother's bedside and learns a family secret.



A divorced father who discovers only love, not bribes, can keep his daughter 'his' on Thursdays.



And Jerry, a young boy desperately looking for the missing Grover Cleveland card to complete his set of president cards.



Here are nine stories by Robert Cormier, one of the most gifted writers of young adult fiction today; stories that are warm, touching, and intensely personal--to be savored by readers of all ages.

The Color of Absence : 12 Stories About Loss and Hope

Virginia Euwer Wolff (Make Lemonade, Bat 6) sums up the essence of the 12 stories in The Color of Absence: "One of the things that interests me most about loss is that often, while we are being swept away by losing something, we are gaining something else that totally surprises us." A dozen young adult authors look at this paradox in all its guises as it touches young lives, in this collection of short fictional pieces edited by James Howe. Two of the stories are extraordinary--Wolff's own "Chair," which dramatizes the heartbreaking descent into Alzheimer's over three visits between an old man and his great-grandson, and Annette Curtis Klause's delicate and astonishingly moving tale of a vampire who rediscovers love through the affection and death of a small cat. Knowledgeable fans of young adult literature will be intrigued by the unlikely collaboration of Jacqueline Woodson and Chris Lynch in "The Rialto," an excerpt from a novel in progress. Walter Dean Myers, Avi, Angela Johnson, Norma Fox Mazer, Naomi Shihab Nye, and other authors explore losses ranging from a stolen bicycle to a father dying of AIDS. Young readers of a variety of ages and temperaments are sure to find at least a couple of stories here to touch their hearts. (Ages 12 and older) --Patty Campbell

In this stunning collection of short fiction, thirteen of the most accomplished writers for young people today turn their considerable talents to a theme that resonates in the hearts and minds of adolescents -- loss. As James Howe suggests in his introduction to the collection, it is in adolescence that we feel our losses as if for the first time "...with a greater depth of pain and drama than we are aware of having experienced ever before." And those losses may take many forms -- the death of a parent or grandparent or pet; the departure or disappearance of a true and trusted friend or sibling; the end of a relationship; or even the end of a defining chapter in one's life. But with loss comes the opportunity for reevaluation and change and growth, which is what often allows these stories to be as funny as they are touching, and as uplifting as they might be sorrowful. Whatever their emotional responses, young adult readers will be challenged to think about their own lives in new ways, to consider what has gone by, and, more important, what is yet to come.

American Eyes: New Asian-American Short Stories for Young Adults

In this unique collection of touching and heartfelt short stories, ten young Asian-American writers re-create the conflicts that all young people feel living in two distinct worlds -- one of memories and traditions, and one of today. Whether it includes dreams of gossiping with the prettiest blond girl in class, not wanting to marry the man your parents love, or discovering that your true identity is ultimately your decision, these extraordinary stories by writers of Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, Hawaiian, Filipino, and Korean descent explore the confusion and ambivalence of growing up in a world different from the one their parents knew -- and the choices we all must make when looking for a world to which we want to belong.

No Easy Answers

This anthology features stories about individuals who find themselves in situations that test their strength of character. They are called upon to make moral choices, face the consequences of their actions, and consider what it means to "do the right thing. " From computer blackmail, peer pressure, and gang violence to drug use, unwanted pregnancy, guilt and atonement, these characters face decisions that may affect the rest of their lives. There are many tough choices; there are no easy answers.

Leaving Home: Stories

How do we become who we need to be? How do we make the transition from child to adult? Sometimes we have very few people to guide us. Sometimes the journeys are lonely. Sometimes it takes a lot of courage to see how far we've come. "Leaving Home" is a collection of stories by some of the world's most powerful writers (including Toni Morrison, Amy Tan, Gary Soto, Norma Fox Mazer, and Sandra Cisneros) about departing from familiar worlds, encountering pain and confusion, finding a new way of being. Transcendent, magical, transforming . . . for readers young and old.

Here is an unusual collection of short stories, from a variety of distinguished writers from different cultures and different viewpoints, that explores the turning point in every adolescent's life when he or she is forced to take that first step away from home, family, and the known. From personal tales of unwed mothers, arranged marriages, and divorcing parents, to stories about refugees and war resistance, Leaving Home paints a canvas of universal experience for teen-age readers, and includes stories by Tim Wynne-Jones, Sandra Cisneros, Gary Soto, and many others.

Doing Time Notes from the Undergrad

2041: Twelve Short Stories About the Future by Top Science Fiction Writers

Where will you be in the year  2041?



The Drapery Defense League objects to Hamlet  because Polonius is stabbed while he's hiding behind a  curtain, rock'n'roll gangs roam the streets, a  scrumptious free confecton called swoodies has been  devised to make people gain weight--then pay to  lose it, and people attach an extra ear to their own  to amplify noise....



Leading  science fiction writer Jane Yolen presents twelve  humorous to horrific, entertaining and intriguing  stories about the future by top writers, including  Bruce Coville, Joe Haldeman, Anne McCaffrey, Patricia  A. McKillip and Connie Willis.

Twelve Shots

Guns. They are an undeniable part of contemporary life. Stories about their use--and misuse--spice the nightly news, the papers, and our favorite TV shows. Guns shape the course of history. They make us wild with excitement or red with anger, sick to our stomachs or convinced that we're safe. Guns provoke extreme emotions in all of us.

In this riveting collection of short fiction, twelve authors explore the emotion-driven world of guns. Dealing with everything from a city kid's desperation to a country boy's first glimpse of manhood, from a girl's struggle against helplessness to a teenage trio's horrifying battle of wills, these original stories are as varied and exceptional as the authors themselves. Sometimes shocking, occasionally funny, and often intensely sad, these stories are all thought-provoking and addictively readable. A superb anthology, passionate and hard-hitting, Twelve Shots helps us understand our world and solidify our own beliefs.